


Failures

by IRegretNothingAndEverything



Series: The Pain of Healing [6]
Category: Half Life VR But The AI Is Self Aware
Genre: Dreams, Gordon's there he's just nappin, Nightmares, Suicide, Suicide Attempt, also not tagging boomer cause it's not important at all to the fic, but it is there, frenrey but not really, it is like three am who knows, they are also snugglin, they're just snugglin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:27:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27034927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IRegretNothingAndEverything/pseuds/IRegretNothingAndEverything
Summary: There's a place somewhere, where Gordon Freeman slipped through his hands, and fell.
Series: The Pain of Healing [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1954114
Comments: 6
Kudos: 82





	Failures

**Author's Note:**

> Hewwo. *points a gun at you except the gun is my writing* be sad :)

They ran, bursting through the stairwell doors, scrambling up as quickly as the three of them could manage. Harold managed to keep the lead, pushing open the door to the roof with a shoulder, barely feeling the tinge as he slammed into the metal door. 

Gordon stood on the other side of the railing, staring back towards him. There was something in his eyes, desperate and terrifying to Harold, and he lunged for Gordon, as he tilted back and out of sight. 

He crossed the roof in record time, leaning half over the railing, arms extending out towards him, someone was holding onto his back so he didn’t go tumbling out after Gordon, and reached, hoping to god-

And Gordon slipped from his fingers, even as Harold grabbed for him, anything he could reach, but he was too far down, a disturbing peace on his face being the last expression that Harold could make out before he slipped too far out of his view, too far out of his reach, tumbling straight to the unforgiving concrete below. 

Harold woke with a gasp, tears already on his face. Bubby was already sitting up when Harold shot up, obviously worried. Harold’s chest heaved, trying to calm himself down, telling itself that it was just a dream, Gordon was okay, in the other room right at that moment, it was okay-

Maybe that was Bubby. Harold couldn’t quite be sure of that anymore. It’s head pounded, and he clung, one hand clutching onto Bubby’s arm perhaps a bit too tightly but Bubby didn’t complain, clinging onto him right back, one hand in his hair, slowly rocking with it. 

Despite the fact that Harold began to calm, there was still something in the back of it’s mind, something not quite sitting right, and Harold frowned slightly, before pulling away, eyes darting around nervously. “I- I need to know...” 

“Alright, come on.” Bubby flung the blankets off, sliding off the bed. Harold followed quickly, wrapping his arms around one of Bubby’s, letting him lead Harold out of the room. 

They had commandeered Gordon’s guest room for the time being, which was next to Joshua’s room. There was a pause for a moment, as they stood outside the door, trying to hear if Joshua had woken up to Harold’s nightmare, but with no sign of that, they shuffled along the hall. 

The door to Gordon’s door was already cracked, and Bubby pushed it open a bit more, peeking in.  
Benrey was awake still, sitting on his phone, one hand buried in Gordon’s hair as Gordon slept on his chest. Benrey looked over towards them as the door opened, and then waved them over with his phone. Bubby carefully tugged Harold in, and Harold followed, eyes stuck onto Gordon. They settled carefully, Bubby leaning against the bedside table, watching Gordon breathe quietly. 

For a moment, they stood there quietly, before Bubby yawned again, and Harold blinked, letting himself breathe again. “I caught him.” 

“You caught him.” Benrey confirmed, and Harold nodded, before tugging Bubby slightly. Half asleep as he was again, Bubby just blinked sleepily at him, and then followed along, the two of them returning to the guest room. Bubby slipped back off to sleep, clinging onto Harold, but he sat awake, holding onto Bubby quietly, unable to fall back asleep to the idea that somewhere, he hadn’t caught Gordon.

**Author's Note:**

> Anyways, this idea has been floating in my head for a bit. Someone mentioned it to me, the idea that Harold, since he was the one who caught Gordon, would have the thought in his head 'what if I hadn't caught him' and that, mixed with the fact that Gordon had told him that Gordon wished Harold hadn't, is just. Oof.


End file.
